Latest Evolution of language Stories
Selection in European populations of genes regulated by FOXP2, a key factor in development and language Researchers have designed a method that can universally test for evolutionary adaption, or positive (Darwinian) selection, in any chosen set of genes, using re-sequencing data such as that generated by the 1000 Genomes Project. The method identifies gene sets that show evidence for positive selection in comparison with matched controls, and thus highlights genes for further functional...
Michael Harper for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online We’ve all heard the oft-repeated statistics about women talking more than men. And to back up those statistics, one previous study has shown that a part of the brain responsible for processing communication is simply larger in a woman than a man. Now, a new study adds to those claims by moving a step further, showing that the female brain is actually designed with communication in mind. Performed by doctors at the University of...
Findings could lead to greater understanding of sex differences in language acquisition Male rat pups have more of a specific brain protein associated with language development than females, according to a study published February 20 in The Journal of Neuroscience. The study also found sex differences in the brain protein in a small group of children. The findings may shed light on sex differences in communication in animals and language acquisition in people. Sex differences in early...
Emory University Scientists studying how songbirds stay on key have developed a statistical explanation for why some things are harder for the brain to learn than others. “We’ve built the first mathematical model that uses a bird’s previous sensorimotor experience to predict its ability to learn,” says Emory biologist Samuel Sober. “We hope it will help us understand the math of learning in other species, including humans.” Sober conducted the research with physiologist...
Babies' ability to detect complex rules in language outshines that of adults New research examining auditory mechanisms of language learning in babies has revealed that infants as young as three months of age are able to automatically detect and learn complex dependencies between syllables in spoken language. By contrast, adults only recognized the same dependencies when asked to actively search for them. The study by scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain...
UCLA scientists identify 2,000 important genes Can the song of a small bird provide valuable insights into human stuttering and speech-related disorders and conditions, including autism and stroke? New research by UCLA life scientists and colleagues provides reason for optimism. The scientists discovered that some 2,000 genes in a region of the male zebra finch's brain known as "Area X" are significantly linked to singing. More than 1,500 genes in this region, a critical part of the...
Researchers have found that infants, through their daily experience with language, learn and understand the meanings of words for foods and body parts. Upending previous notions of language development in infants, children between the ages of six and nine months were shown to perceive and understand elements of the sounds of their native language. Previously, psychologists believed comprehension of words did not emerge until a child was closer to one year old. Elika Bergelson and Daniel...
(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Researchers have found the gene known as Foxp2 helps regulate the wiring of neurons in the brain.In 2001, scientists discovered that mutations of Foxp2 cause a rare form of speech and language disorder. This finding prompted years of intense research into the human gene and corresponding versions found in other species.In this new study, investigators exploited Foxp2's role as a genetic dimmer switch, turning up or down the amount of product made by other genes. The...
Foxp2, a gene involved in speech and language, helps regulate the wiring of neurons in the brain, according to a study which will be published on July 7th in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics. The researchers identified this functional link by first identifying the major targets of Foxp2 in developing brain tissue and then analysing the function of relevant neurons.Foxp2 codes for a regulatory protein that provides a window into unusual aspects of brain function. In 2001, scientists...
Among 12- to 24-month old children who view educational baby videos, there does not appear to be evidence that overall general language learning improves or that words featured in the programming are learned, according to a report posted online today that will appear in the May print issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.Children age 2 and younger spend an estimated two hours per day exposed to media on a screen, and the average age at...
